The invention relates to a knitting machine for the simultaneous manufacture of a plurality of tubular articles, specifically garments known as panty-hose and the like. Said machine is of the type comprising: two fixed circular bars of needles (one of which is mostly on a cylindrical bed of needles and the other on a discoid bed of needles, referred to as a plate, in which the needles are disposed radially); two sets of control cams for the needles of the two bars, carried by two apparatuses rotating in opposite directions and coaxially to the two bars; and means carried by said two apparatuses for the alternating entrainment of the yarns with subsequent passage to the entraining means of said two apparatuses, in order to supply the yarn for the needles in the zone momentarily controlled by the cams in transit. The articles are formed by spaced arcs of needles of the two bars, one or more yarn feeds being provided for each arc, the yarn being entrained in both directions along the respective arc; each circumferential row of stitches is formed half by the needles of one bar and the other half by the needles of the other bar. Alternate rows can be produced with different types of yarn.
On the needles of each arc or separate set of needles, in order to form a panty-hose with a variable number of needles, the following are made: first, rows suitable for creating the closure of the toes; then the tubular part of the legs; then the closure part for the crutch; and then the part known as the body or pants which forms the continuation and the junction of the two legs made initially; finally, an elastic belt is made with double fabric, which is capable of supporting the garment.
On each of the two counter-rotating apparatuses, the cams acting on the needles are formed by a plurality of sets of double and contiguous cam systems for raising and lowering the needles in order to form the stitch.